


Hunters, Vampires and Relationship Problems

by biteymadlady (wespndw)



Category: Supernatural
Genre: F/M, Gen, Married Characters, Married Couple, Vampires
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-10
Updated: 2019-10-11
Packaged: 2020-08-14 03:22:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,662
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20185435
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wespndw/pseuds/biteymadlady
Summary: Lisa and Dean are married and raising her son Ben. Dean works as a car mechanic and goes on the occasional supernatural hunt with his brother Sam Winchester. Sam works out of the Old Men of Letters Bunker as a hunter. When Ben mysteriously goes missing Dean calls on his brother to help find him before something bad happens. Something vampire related perhaps? There's also some friction between Dean and Lisa due to Dean being a hunter. Let's just say it causes some major issues between the two of them that I won't spoil here.





	1. Ben Goes Missing

**Author's Note:**

> This is my very first fan fiction that i'm posting to AO3. If you want to critique this work please feel free to do so, I'd love any constructive criticism. Also this is 20 pages long on my computer so I'm attempting to make it more readable by breaking it up into chapters, hope this helps a bit. Hope you enjoy what I've written.

“I thought you said you weren't going to do this anymore?” Lisa asks.

“I know, but it's _Sam_, you know we'd drop everything for each other.” Dean replies. 

“You would do anything for Ben right?”

“You're right, but that's different.” Lisa pauses sighing. “He has normal problems, like getting bullied and failing math, well almost. He's not getting chased by an alpha vampire, who I remind you, we thought was dead.”

“True, but he's my brother, I can't just abandon him.”

“I'm not asking you to abandon him, just, does it have to be you?” Lisa asks, putting her hand on Dean's arm. “It's not just you two against the world anymore. You have help now. There's Jodie, plus Alex and Claire are pretty capable too.”

“You're not wrong, we do have help, but Claire and Alex are barely older than Ben is, I can't ask them to go after an alpha vamp, not by themselves.”

“Then have Jodie go with them, or better yet Donna, she's supposed to be an expert in this type of thing, right?”

“Yeah, she's pretty awesome.” Dean says smiling. “I guess I could give her a call, see if she's busy.”

“Thanks for not just leaving in the middle of the night again.” Lisa says as she goes back to the kitchen, where Ben is furrowing his brow at his math homework.

“Uh, yeah sure, no problem.” Dean replies in surprise. “I thought I did that without waking you.” he tries to laugh but it dies quickly when he sees the look Lisa gives him.

“To your credit, you did.” she replies, pausing. “The first time.”

Dean pauses before he calls Donna. He watches Lisa as she helps Ben with a difficult problem. He smiles as he sees Ben finally get the idea he's been having trouble with all week._ I still can't believe this is my life now_, he thinks as he walks back to the living room and takes out his cell phone. He dials Donna's number, hoping she's not out on call, or worse yet, on a hunting trip. Last time he called Donna didn't get back to him for a week because a bunch of angry werewolves were attacking her hometown in Minnesota. He sighs as he hears the familiar beep of her voicemail. He hates leaving messages. It reminds him too much of when he and Sam were first hunting, mostly for their dad, who they both started to believe was dead. He remembers all too well how that turned out. He leaves a short message, telling her to get back to him as soon as possible and his number.

“You manage to get a hold of her?” Lisa asks.

“No, I had to leave her a message.”

“That's too bad, but it's Donna, I'm sure she'll call you back.”

“Yeah, I just hope it's not too late by then.”

“You know, you could call Sam too.” Lisa says, “Just because you guys are fighting, it doesn't mean you don't care about each other.”

“I know, it's just, you know how Sam gets.”

“Yes, I know, I've met him remember.” Lisa replies, laughing. “He was the one who gave Ben a collection of books, in Latin.”

“Hey, he was just trying to be nice.”

“I know, but who reads Latin anymore?” Lisa says with a smile. “Ben is smart but where he's going to use Latin? I love your brother but he's a little weird.”

“Yeah, I guess you're right, he can be a bit awkward sometimes.”

“Yes, but he tries, and he cares about you.” Lisa replies. “And you care about him, so stop being such a jerk, pick up the phone and call your brother.”

“Okay, _fine_.” Dean says, rolling his eyes. “But I'm not leaving anymore voicemails.”

“I didn't say you had to do that.” Lisa calls as she heads upstairs. “I just said you had to call him.”

“You know she's right? Don't you?” Ben asks looking up from his homework.

“I don't need to your help, finish your math.” Dean says frowning.

“Whatever.” Ben says shaking his head as he goes back to his homework.

Dean sighs as he remembers their last conversation, he's been doing that a lot lately. He's used to being the one to offer a smile or a pat on the shoulder. Sam was the one who could offer a kind word or encourage someone if they were on the verge of giving up. _Same would reach out to him if he wanted to talk to me, right?_ Dean frowns, still, it has been a long time. Even when they were apart, or on a particularly nasty job, they still find time to check in, if only to let each other know they were still alive. He pauses a minute before dialing Sam's number. He dials it anyway, hoping he's not making a mistake.

Another voicemail later, Dean is sitting with Lisa on the couch. “You're still worried about him, aren't you?” she asks.

“You can read me pretty well by now huh?” he asks.

“Yes, and I can tell you're not really here right now.”

“I wish I could be, it's just not like him to not even check in.” Dean says. “Even if we're not talking, we at least know if we're alive or not.”

“Well you did leave a message for Donna too, remember?” Lisa says giving his arm a squeeze. “Honestly you've done all you could.”

“No, I haven't. I should be out there, I should be looking for him.” Dean replies brushing her hand away and standing up. He starts to head towards the door, but Lisa's voice stops him. “You walk out that door, don't come back here, not tonight at least.”

“Come on, you don't mean that.” Dean says, turning around.

“I think I do.” Lisa says turning away. “I love you, you know I do. But you're just so damned stubborn sometimes. You don't have to rush out that door every time someone is in trouble Dean.”

“It's my job, people out there need my help.” Dean says glaring. “You know what could happen if Donna doesn't call me back. I don't know what I would do if Sam died and I didn't do anything.”

“Don't accuse me of not caring about your brother!” Lisa cries. “I care about Sam too, but I care about you too, stop being such an idiot!”

“Lisa, I didn't say I didn't-”

“I know, I’m sorry, I just don't know what to do anymore.” Lisa replies taking a deep breath. “I know you care about me and Ben. I knew when we got married hunting would come first, and I was fine with that. I still am.”

“Then what's the problem?”

“It's the dishonestly I can't stand. You think I don't know when you sneak out in the middle of the night. Or the times you sneak off to take a call from Jodie or Bobby or-”

” Hey, you don't-”

“I know I’m sorry I forgot.” Lisa says. “I know how much Bobby meant to you. But I'm tired of being the third most important person in your life.”

“What are you saying?”

“I want to be as important to you as Sam is, I don't want to be the distraction.” Lisa says, glaring at him.

“Wait, I can't lose you too.” Dean says taking a step towards her. “I'm sorry I tried to storm out of here. I'm just worried.”

“You keep saying that.” Lisa says as she turns around. “I'm worried about him too. But running out the door in a panic isn't going to help anyone.”

“I know.”

“No, I don't think you do.” Lisa says. “You act like you hear me, but if you were really listening to what I was saying you wouldn't be halfway out the door right now.”

“I'm not, I swear, I won't do anything without telling you.” Dean says. “I promise.” Lisa crosses the room, putting her hands on his arms. She looks at him. She hates seeing him this way. “How long have we been married now?”

“Three years, I think that's right isn't it?” Dean asks, finally meeting her gaze.

“Yes. And in those three years have I ever said you can't help people?” Lisa asks. “Have I ever said, you can't go kill those vampires, or you can't go hunting werewolves again?”

“No, you haven't.”

“I've never made you choose between us and hunting. I've never said it's me or Sam. I'd never do that to you. It would be like asking me to choose between Ben and you. It's not fair.” Lisa stops for a moment and places her hands on Dean's shoulders. “I'm not asking you to choose now either.”

“Then what are you asking me?”

“I'm saying if we're going to keep doing this, you have to be honest with me.” Lisa replies. “And if you insist on leaving in the middle of the night, at least leave me a note.”

“I think I can do that.” Dean says kissing her on the forehead.

“Good.” Lisa says with a smile. She slips out of his grasp and goes upstairs. He shakes his head as he locks the house for the night. _How does she do that?_ He wonders he turns off the lights. _I was ready to walk out that door, maybe forever. Not only did she talk me down, she nearly gave me an ultimatum. __I guess that's why I married in her the first place. She doesn't make me choose, she just wants to be part of the picture._

A loud buzzing noise jolts Dean out of a sound sleep. He rubs his eyes and looks at the clock. It's telling him it's six in the morning. _Early but not the witching hour_, he thinks as he fumbles for his cell phone. He sees who tried to call and sits up. Did Sam leave him a message too? He slips out of bed and heads out to the hallway so he doesn't wake up Lisa. He checks his messages, Sam did leave a message. _Hey Dean, sorry for not picking up earlier, I'm not mad, I was just, busy. I know it's early there sorry if I woke you up. I think I have a lead on the alpha vampire, Donna called me tonight. She said you were worried about me so I figured I'd better call you. Call me when you get this message. My number is still the same. I have to go but if I don't answer just leave a message, I know you hate doing that, but you did it once, you can do it again. _

“Thank god he's okay.” Dean says with a sigh of relief. He doesn't realize until he's deleted the message and leaning on the banister, but his hands are shaking. “I really wasn't sure if he was alive or not.” he muses as he stares out into space for a moment. He heads downstairs and goes to the small study near the living room. It's not much but he didn't need much space by the time he married Lisa. “I still can't believe at least one of us has a normal life.” he says as he sits down in the computer chair and flicks on the monitor. He's not sure what he's looking for. Sam didn't say where the vampire was, just that he had a lead. He glances at his cell phone. _Guess I should call Sam first,_ he dials Sam's number.

“Hey Dean, what's up?” Sam asks. “Is this going to take long? I'm kind of busy.”

“I guess not.” Dean replied. “I just wanted to check in, see how you're doing.”

“I'm good, a little bruised right now, just got done dealing with another nest, I think I'm on the right track to find the alpha vamp.”

“Really? You need any help?”

“No, I think I've got it.” Sam replies. He pauses. “Dean, I know you, this isn't about the alpha vamp, is it?”

“You got me.” Dean says laughing. “I just, I feel bad about how we left things. I wanted to apologize about what I said to you that night.”

“Oh.” Sam is quiet for a minute.

“Sam, you still there?”

“Yeah, yeah sorry.” Sam replies. “I'm just not used to you apologizing, that's usually my thing.”

“I know, I just didn't want to have any regrets if things went south later.” Dean says. “I know I suck at feelings and stuff. But you're my brother, I'd hate for us to be fighting if well, you know.”

“I know what you mean.” Sam replies. “You've made me a little speechless actually.”

“Ugh, this isn't an after school special.” Dean says rolling his eyes. “I just meant I don't want things to be weird if the vamp gets you.”

Sam laughs. “Who are you and what have you done with my brother?”

“Hey, I can have feelings too you know.”

“I know, you just don't show them very often.” Sam replies. “Thanks for making an exception for me.”

“Yeah sure.” Dean grumbles. “Just don't get used to it.”

“Now that we're done with all of that.” Sam replies. “How are Lisa and Ben?”

“They're good.” Dean says. “Any word from Amelia lately?”

“No, I think she's worried about what her dad will think.”

“That's too bad.” Dean replies. “Well I hope things work out, but if they don't, it's her loss.”

“Thanks for that.” Sam says, _I guess Dean really does feel bad. _“Any advice on where I can find the alpha?”

“Yeah, but I think you got this.” Dean says smiling. “You didn't go to college for nothing right?”

“True, but they didn't cover fighting with werewolves and vampires at Stanford.” Sam replies with a laugh.

“Yeah I guess not.” Dean says checking his watch. “Well I guess you have better things to do than talk to me. I'll let you get back to your research.”

“Thanks, say hi to Lisa and Ben for me.” Sam replies. “And Dean, thanks, I appreciate you apologizing. It means a lot.”

“No problem.” Dean says, “I'll tell Lisa and Ben you said hi. Thanks for taking my call.”

“Yeah, it was good to hear from you, I know I've been bad at keeping you in the loop lately.”

“Don't worry about it. I know how it is.” Dean says glancing at the clock. “Well good luck, call me if you need backup.”

“Sure, I'll do that.” Sam says. “Bye.”

“Bye.”

Sam breathes a sigh of relief as he ends the call. “Well at least he doesn't think I'm dead.” he says turning to Donna who nods. “But I don't get it, why didn't you just call him back?”

“I could have, but I knew he would rather hear from you.” she replies with a smile.

“Yeah, I guess.”

“What's wrong?” she asks frowning. “I thought you would be happy.”

“I know, I'm glad, but, you know Dean.”

“Ah, that I do.” Donna replies. “He's a stubborn one, not unlike someone else I know.”

“You're not wrong.” Sam says smiling at her. He shakes his head. He didn't want to involve Donna but he didn't want Dean to just drop everything either. “I guess I do need some help.”

“You bet you do.”

“You weren't supposed to hear that.”

“I'm standing two feet from you.” Donna says. “How could I not hear that?”

“Fine, I _am_ glad you're here.”

“You think he's still going to show up don't you?”

“I tried to reassure him, but I doubt it worked.”

“You're forgetting something you know.”

“What's that?” Sam asks raising his eyebrows.

“Lisa, you dummy.”

“Right, she can be pretty persuasive.” Sam says glancing at the computer screen.

“Any changes?”

“No not yet anyway.” Sam says turning back towards Donna.

“Don't you worry, we're going to get this bastard.” Donna says noticing Sam's expression. “Between the two of us he won't know what hit him.”

“I know, that's not what worries me.”

“Don't worry about Dean, if he's smart he'll listen to Lisa, not his own ego.”

“I'd like to believe that, but you know Dean. He doesn't learn from his mistakes.”

“And you do?”

“Well, you have a point there.” Sam replies smiling. “I did call you this time.”

“True, I guess you're starting to learn.”

“You are, you have to give Dean a chance to learn too.”

“Yeah I guess you're right.” Sam says. Donna smirks as he stops himself from checking his phone again.

“Let's get something to eat.” Donna says.

“Donna, it's six in the morning.” Sam says laughing. “Nothing is open at this hour, except that creepy gas station, surely you're not that hungry?”

“No, I just think we should stretch our legs, get out of the bunker for a bit.” Donna replies as she heads up the stairs towards the door.

“Yeah, that does sound a like a good idea.” Sam replies standing up and stretching.

“Well then what are you waiting for?” Donna says impatiently.

“Okay, let's go then.”

Dean stares at his phone, he can't believe what he heard. Sam left him another voicemail. He listens to the message again. _Dean, sorry I didn't pick up earlier_, _I was kind of busy. I've got a lead on where the alpha vampire is. Thing is if I don't make a move tonight it may be too late. I don't want you to worry, and don't try to come here. I don't want Lisa and Ben to lose you. Donna is here with me. I think between the two of us we can take him, but if not, well, you hate it when I get sappy so I won't. Just call me when you get this. Don't do anything stupid, I think you know what I mean._

Dean pauses as he sets the note on the table. He knows he should be sleeping, not leaving, again. “At least I'm leaving a note this time, like she wanted.” he tells himself as he picks up his bag. He pauses in the doorway, what if she doesn't forgive him for this? _I told her I was fine, maybe I should just wait until tomorrow morning _he thinks. He can't shake the feeling that something bad is going to happen. He turns and heads downstairs trying not to make too much noise. As he reaches for the door handle he freezes. They've only been married for three years but he knows when Lisa has caught him red handed.

“Where the hell do you think you're going?” Lisa asks, he doesn't even have to see her face to know she's glaring at him.

“I can't just let Sam fend for himself.” Dean says turning around slowly. “I know you're mad.”

“You're right, I _am_ mad.” Lisa replies glaring at him. “I thought we talked about this. I know you left a note, I know what I said but I changed my mind.”

“Changed your mind?” Dean asks raising his eyebrows. “I thought you weren't making me choose?”

“I know, I just, I can't stand the thought of waking up one morning, and finding out you died in some back alley, or out in some shack in the woods.” Lisa says her anger gone. “What if Sam isn't even there? He told you not to go didn't he?”

“How do you even know about that?” Dean asks. “I wasn't even upstairs when I listened to the voicemail.”

“I know you and I know Sam.” Lisa replies. “He wouldn't want you to leave, not like this.”

“I don't know what to say.”

“Say you'll at least wait until it's light outside.” Lisa says crossing the room. “Just don't rush off again. Please.”

“What if something happens? I've always protected him, I know Donna is there too but what if it's not just one vampire? What if there's a bunch of them?”

“Then they'll call you.” Lisa says. She stops suddenly. He sees her expression change. She's made up her mind and he's not going to like her decision.

“I'm in trouble, I know.” he sets down his bag and turns off the lights.

“Yes, you are.” Lisa replies, trying to glare at him. Her expression softens. “I can't lose you, not like that.”

“Come on, I'm not leaving, not now at least.” Dean replies crossing the room and putting a hand on her arm. She smiles at him. “I want to believe you, I do,” she turns her face away from him. He can tell she's trying not to cry. “Hey, don't worry, I'm here, I'm not dead yet.”

“There's that dark humor again.” Lisa says frowning. “You have terrible timing you know that?” she wipes her eyes. He's relieved to see smiling.

“Yeah, so I've been told.” he replies. “I'm sorry, I know you're still mad. I swear I thought I was fine with letting Sam and Donna handling things. I really did.”

“Clearly you changed your mind.” Lisa said glancing at the bag by the couch. Dean follows her gaze. “How do I know you're not lying?”

“Fine.” Dean replies rolling his eyes. Her eyes widen as he takes off his wedding ring. “If I try to leave again without telling you, you can take this back.”

“Dean, I didn't mean you had to take me _that_ seriously.” Lisa says taking the ring in her hand. They don't speak for a minute, Dean's phone vibrating scares both of them, making them jump. “Sorry, I should've turned it off.” he says as he takes it out of his pocket.

“It's okay, it just startled me, that's all.” Lisa says laughing. “I'm guessing it's Sam?”

“Yeah, sorry I should take this.”

“It's fine, he's your brother.” Lisa says. She watches as he heads to the study. “Dean, I'm going to hold you to your promise.”

“I know, I'm counting on it.” Dean replies with a wave.

“Hey Sam, what's up?” Dean asks as he closes the door to the study. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, well sort of.” Sam replies. “We're fine but the vampire got away.”

“Oh, that was quick. What happened?”

“We got there, and we saw him, but he was faster than we thought.” Sam says, “We chased him but we lost him. Donna tried to shoot him, I think she wounded him.”

“That's good isn't it?”

“Yeah but I'm beginning to think we have a bigger problem. The nest is a lost bigger than we thought.”

“How much bigger?”

“I'm not sure.” Sam says frowning. “Donna and I are scoping it out right now.”

“That's not good, you guys are okay right?”

“Yeah, we're fine we didn't get turned don't worry.”

“Good, you running around without a soul was bad enough.”

“Hey at least I was human, Crowley turned you into a demon.” Sam says with a laugh.

“Yeah but I was dying, it was your idea to call him remember?”

“I remember, I kind of regret it now.”

“Ha-ha, very funny Sam.” Dean replies. “You guys find any clues?”

“Some, I'm going to research it more when we get back to the bunker.”

“Of course you are.” Dean says laughing.

“Hey, I'm the brains, you're the brawn, right?” Sam says with a laugh. “Are you and Lisa still fighting?”

“We were never fighting.”

“Right.” Sam says sarcastically. “I'm your brother, I think I know when you're in trouble.”

“Yeah, I guess.” Dean replies. “To answer your question no, we're not fighting, not anymore at least.”

“Good.” Sam glances around trying to figure out where Donna is. He nearly jumps when she appears right next to him. She shakes her head at his expression. _No luck I guess_, he thinks. _Guess we'd better leave for now._ “Sam can I ask you a question?” Dean asks.

“Sure, what is it?”

“Am I a good person?”

“What makes you say that?” Sam asks. “I thought you said you and Lisa _weren't_ fighting?”

“We're not. But she caught me trying to sneak out again.”

“Oh, I see.” Sam replies. “Why do you do that? No wonder she yells at you so much.”

“Hey, you gave Ben those books.”

“Dean that's not even close and you know it.” Sam says sharply. “Tell me what happened.”

“She caught me and begged me not to leave.” Dean replies. “She persuaded me to wait until it was light out.”

“Okay so what's the problem then? Clearly you listened to her.”

“I did, but she wanted me to promise not to leave again, not in the middle of the night anyway.”

“Sounds reasonable to me.” Sam replies. “So why are you asking me if you're a good person? You know what my answer is going to be.”

“Sam, I told her if I ever tried to leave like that again she could have my ring back.”

“What ring? Wait, you don't mean, you didn't? Why?”

“Now you sound like a teenage girl.”

“It's just not like you.” Sam says. “I guess you really do care about her. I mean I knew you did, wait, did she accept it?”

“She did, that's the scary thing.”

“Oh, huh, well guess you'd better behave then.” Sam says laughing.

“Yeah I guess.” Dean smiles. “I don't know, should I have done that? It seems kind of stupid now.”

“I won't disagree with you there. But if you went that far it means you're willing to hold yourself accountable. I know you guys love each other but it won't work unless you're both willing to give a little.”

“Thanks Dr. Phil.”

“Hey, you asked for my advice, don't be a dick about it.”

“Fine, I should go, I need to get some sleep.”

“Yeah, me too. I'm glad you were able to work things out.”

“Me too, stay safe, and say hi to Donna for me.”

“Will do.” Sam says. “Okay well, take care, I'll call you if anything changes.”

“Sounds good, I'll talk to you soon.”

Dean breathes a sigh of relief as he hangs up the phone. He's glad, he's not fighting with anyone anymore. He glances out towards the living room as he opens the door. “Well, maybe.” he says to himself, Lisa is still sitting on the couch holding his ring. She looks up and sees him. “How did it go?”

“Fine, Sam and Donna went after the vamp, but they didn't capture it. Sam thinks Donna wounded it though.”

“That's good.”

“Yeah he was going to do some more research when they got back to the bunker.”

“Figures.” Lisa says glancing back down at the ring in her hand. Dean gets up and sits down next to her on the couch. “Here I should take that back.” he says taking the ring from her hand. “Are you okay? You don't look so good.”

“I think so, you just caught me off guard.”

“You keep saying that, to be honest I didn't expect to do it either.” Dean replies putting an arm around her. “I know you get sick of being the only one who holds me accountable. I wanted to be the one who does that this time.”

“If this doesn't work then I guess nothing will.”

“Yeah I guess.” Dean says. “You're being awfully quiet, is there something else you wanted to talk about?”

“Yes, no, I don't know.” Lisa replies, shaking her head. “I just can't shake this feeling that s something is wrong. I can't explain why.”

“You too huh.” Dean says. “That's the reason I was going to leave earlier. I'm glad you stopped me though.”

“Me too.” Lisa replies. “I know you're not going anywhere but...”

“What?”

“I know you're fine but with what you and Sam do, it's not out of the question that you'll both die.”

“Everyone dies sometime.”

“That's not what I mean.” Lisa says her voice shaky. “The things you hunt, what if one day I get a phone call from Sam? Or you get a call and it's someone saying he's dead?”

“You're just speculating now.” Dean says trying to reassure. He tries to kiss her but she stops him.

“No, I'm not and you know it.”

“I thought we were done fighting?” Dean says sighing. “What's this really about?”

“I'm not mad, I just don't know what I would do if I lost you.” Lisa replies. “Or if you lost Sam, it would break you.”

“Yeah but that's normal isn't it?” Dean says confused. “You'd be upset if something happened to Ben, right?”

“Yeah, but I can handle that if I had to.”

“I'm confused. are you saying you would feel worse if I died then if Ben did?” Dean asks. “That doesn't make any sense to me.”

“It's not that. It's _how_ you might die.” Lisa says her eyes moist. “At least with Ben it would be something normal. A car accident or he could drown or-”

“Ben doesn't even swim, well he's no better than me anyway.” Dean tries to smile but he can't. “I know you're scared, but I told you I'm not going anywhere. Besides there's no reason for me to leave now, Sam said the vamp got away.”

“But that's this time.” Lisa says wiping her eyes. “What about the next time?”

“I thought we were past this.” Dean says. “I gave you my word, I won't sneak off again, I promise.”

“I know, but-”

“Stop, you're spinning out here babe.” Dean says frustrated. “I don't know what else to tell you.”

“You're right, I don't what's wrong with me.” Lisa says. He doesn't reply. Suddenly she starts crying, sobbing almost. “Hey, don't cry, I'm right here. nothing is going to happen to me.” he says as he hugs her. She seems to calm down a little. “What is going on with you? You're not usually like this.”

“I know, you're not going anywhere I know that.” Lisa says her tears subsiding. “I just keep seeing these images in my head and I can't make it stop.”

“What kind of images?”

“I don't think you want to know.”

“I mean, probably not. But if it's making you this upset, maybe you should tell me anyway?”

“I keep seeing you, more specifically your body.” Lisa says. “It's like a nightmare, except it's happening all the time. It wasn't like this before, but ever since you and Sam started fighting, it's just gotten worse.”

“I had no idea, I'm sorry.” Dean replies. He hugs her and she lets him. “Why didn't you tell me this before?”

“I didn't want you to worry about me, not anymore than you already do.” Lisa says. “You have enough to worry about. Besides I could tell how much you were worried about Sam, I didn't want to make things worse.”

“I get that, but you still should've said something.” Dean says with a sigh.

“I know, but I didn't want to scare you either.” Lisa replies. “It's not like you want to hear your wife say, oh by the way, I'm having nightmares about how you die, not only that but I'm having them every night.”

“It's not pretty, but it's no worse than anything Sam and I have seen when we're hunting.” Dean says. “Besides you were the one giving me a lecture about honesty a few hours ago.”

“I'm a hypocrite, but who isn't?”

“True, but if I'm willing to be honest with you, you have to do the same thing for me, right?”

“Right.”

“Feeling better yet?”

“A little.”

“Good, you scared me for a second there.”

“Sorry, I've just had so much on my mind and I'm trying to keep it together, not just for Ben but for you too. I just couldn't do it anymore.”

“I get it, trust me I do.” Dean says. “I mean you've met me right?”

“Yes, and I still married you, didn't I?”

“Ouch, that hurts.”

“You know I don't mean that. Besides, after what you did earlier I know you've come a long way when it comes to expressing your feelings. I'm glad you have.”

“Me too.” Dean says. He glances out the window, it's finally light outside.

“It's probably time to get Ben up for school. I have to get ready for work, and so do you.”

“Yeah, guess I should change.” They both stand up and head upstairs. Neither one of them makes a move to take the bag sitting by the couch. For once Lisa doesn't try to persuade Dean to bring it back upstairs, she knows it's pointless. Dean pauses at the top of the stairs, he hopes he won't have to break his promise, but something tells him this fight isn't over just yet.

“Mom I think someone tried to break in or something.” Ben says as Lisa comes in to wake him up.

“Ben what are you talking about?” Lisa asks. “Dean and I were up half the night and we didn't hear anything.”

“My window got smashed, I didn't do it, I swear.”

“Sure, you didn't.” Lisa says shaking her head. She goes over to the window and inspects it. She frowns, the glass is on the inside, like someone was trying to get in. “Ben what did you do?”

“I told you, I didn't do anything. I swear mom, I woke up early because it was so cold in here. I looked over and it was just like that.”

“Huh, well I'm sure it's nothing.” Lisa says smiling. “Come on, it's time to get up, you should get ready for school.”

“Okay, are you _sure_ you didn't hear anything?” Ben asks frowning. “I'm a sound sleeper, but something like that would have woken me up.”

“I don't know dear, don't worry too much about it.” Lisa says ruffling his hair. “It's just a window. Like I said I was up late so I would've heard if someone was trying to steal our stuff.”

“Why were you up so late?” Ben asks as he gets out of bed and opens his closet. “Were you and Dean fighting again?”

“Sort of, but you don't need to worry about that.”

“Mom I'm 13 not 9, I can handle the truth you know.”

“I know but it's complicated. You should just worry about school, especially math class.”

“Fine, but I did hear you guys last night, at least that one time.” Ben replies rolling his eyes. “Dean was trying to sneak out again, wasn't he?”

“How do you know about that?”

“I caught him once, he made me promise not to tell you about it.”

“When was this?”

“I don’t know a few months ago I think.” Ben shrugs. “I'm not really sure. Are we done? I kind of need to get dressed now.”

“Sure, sorry I should be getting ready too.” Lisa says backing out and closing the door. “I'll see you downstairs.”

“Mom, do you think Dean knows what broke my window?”

“I don't know Ben, I'm sure he'll look at it later, just finish getting dressed okay?”

“Yeah sure.”

Lisa goes downstairs, she tells Dean about the window as he's heading upstairs. He frowns but doesn't seem too worried. This both reassures and worries her. Still it's not like they haven't had more important stuff on their minds the last few hours. “It's just a broken window, don't worry.” Dean says putting a hand on her arm.

“I know, with everything going on, I'm not so sure.”

“I get it, but for now it's just a window, probably some kid threw a rock through it as a prank or something.”

“I hope you're right.”

“If I'm not we'll deal with that when the time comes.”

“Okay, I'll stop worrying, at least for now.” Lisa says as she heads downstairs. Dean stops at the top of the stairs, frowning. Sam and Donna are fine, if a bit bruised, he made up with Lisa and Ben isn't having any problems, so why does he feel like something is wrong? He shakes his head and walks towards the bedroom to change and take a shower. He glances at Ben's door briefly as he walks past. One thing strikes him suddenly. If someone broke the window when they were all supposed to be asleep, why didn't he or Lisa hear it? Sure they were talking but it's not like they were having a shouting match or anything. He shrugs and continues on to the bedroom. Lisa puts down a couple of cereal bowls and two spoons. She tries to shake the feeling that Ben's window is more than just a broken window. “This is ridiculous.” she tells herself as she gets the cereal out of the kitchen cupboard. She shakes her head, _Dean is probably right, it's just some stupid prank._ She looks up when she hears Ben coming down the stairs. “Hey did you sleep okay? Besides your window being broken?” she asks as he sits down at the table.

“Yeah.” Ben replies as he starts pouring cereal into his bowl. Lisa watches as he opens the fridge and gets out the milk and orange juice. Despite their earlier conversation, he seems fine now. Maybe she was worrying for nothing. Considering what happened last night between her and Dean it's no wonder she's a little rattled this morning. It's not long before Dean joins them. Lisa smiles as the two of them eat and talk. _I guess I'm silly for worrying_, _it's probably nothing_. She thinks as she looks at the clock. “Finish your breakfast Ben it's about time for me to take you to school.”

“Okay.”

“Have a good day at school Ben.” Dean says as he gets up and puts his bowl in the sink. “Are you okay?” he asks Lisa as he dries his hands off on a nearby dish towel.

“I think so.” she replies “Am I going crazy? I keep thinking something bad is going to happen, but nothing weird has happened, so why I can't shake this feeling?”

“I know, I was about to say the same thing.” Dean says. He pauses unsure of what to say. “I didn't want to bring it up because I didn't want to worry you.”

“I don't blame you. Especially considering the promise you made me earlier.” Lisa says her eyes falling to Dean's hand where his ring is.

“I don't plan on ever having to make that decision.” Dean says, noticing her gaze. “You know that don't you?”

“I do, but I remember what you said when we first met.”

“Right, I was in a dark place when we met. Sam and I both were.”

“Considering what you guys were doing for a living, what Sam is still doing, it's not surprising.”

“I'm glad you were so stubborn.” Dean says with a smile. “We wouldn't be here right now if you hadn't.”

“Deep down I knew you were more than just a snarky bastard. You were charming when you want to be.”

“True, I'm still a sarcastic jerk.”

“Well not _all_ the time.” Lisa says smiling. “I wouldn't have married you if you were.”

“Wait, so I'm not wrong?”

“No, but I don't think being a jerk is something you want to be right about.”

“Probably not.” Dean checks his watch, sees the time and sighs. “I should get to work.”

“Yeah I need to take Ben to school.”

“Have a good day.”

“You too.” Lisa replies as she walks towards the door. Ben bounds down the stairs to meet her and they leave. Dean clears the table, he stops for a moment, checking his phone. Still no word from Sam. It wasn't like he was expecting him to call again but he wonders if they've made any progress on the case. He grabs his keys and a jacket from the coat hook on the wall next to the front door. He's about to leave when he sees the duffel bag by the couch._ Should I take it back upstairs or just leave it there?_ He wonders as he opens the door. He checks his watch again, realizing the question will have to wait until later. He closes the door and locks it, checking to make sure there aren't any other broken windows. Satisfied he climbs into the car and drives towards town.

“Have you seen Ben?”

“No, isn't he with you?” Dean asks. “Didn't you pick him up from school?”

“I would have but he wanted to spend some time at a friend's house. I told him it was okay as long as he was home by the time I started dinner.”

“It's only five-thirty, you aren't that hungry are you?”

“No but he usually calls before he comes home. He hasn't called yet so I was starting to worry.”

“Well it's still early, if he's not there by the time I get home we can go look for him.”

“I guess you're right.” Lisa says. “Dean you don't think-”

“It's just a broken window, stop obsessing about it.” Dean replies. “I told you this morning it's probably some stupid prank.”

“I know. I'm sorry I'm just being paranoid.” Lisa says. “I'll let you get back to work.”

“I'm sure he's fine, he probably just lost track of time.”

“I hope so.”

“I'll see you later.”

“Okay, sorry for bothering you.”

“I don't mind being interrupted if it's you.”

“Whatever Dean, I'll see you at home.”

“Yeah sure.” Dean smiles as ends the call. He glances around, hoping Tony, the owner didn't see him sneak out. He's not a fan of people talking on the phone, regardless of who it is. “Waste of time and money.” he said to Dean when he started working here. “Unless someone is dying I don't want to see you on your phone.” Dean had received the message loud and clear. Still, the call hadn't lasted more than five minutes so he should be safe. He doesn't encounter Tony as he heads back inside much to his relief.

Dean frowns as he heads to his car to go home. He sees that Lisa tried to call him a bunch of times and there's a voicemail. He checks his watch, it's only seven but if she's called that many times it can't be good. He takes a deep breath as he listens to the message. _Dean it's me, sorry I called so many times, I still haven't heard anything from Ben. I know the kid he was supposed to be hanging out with, I called his parents but they said they haven't seen Ben today. I'm really worried, please call me when you get this. _He stares at the phone for a moment, that uneasy feeling comes back to him in a rush. Did something happen? Did one of those kids beat him up again? Dean realizes he hasn't moved for at least ten minutes. He dials Lisa's number. “Hey, it's me, still no word huh?”

“No, he hasn't tried to call you has he?”

“No, I'm going to go over to that kid's house, see if maybe he's home.” Dean says. “He may have talked to Ben before they left school or something.”

“Okay, keep me posted.”

“I will. I'm sure he's fine.” Dean gets in his car and drives over to Tommy's house; the kid Ben was supposed to hang out with. He takes a deep breath as he knocks on the door. A woman with wild red hair answers, frowning. “Can I help you?” she asks.

“My name is Dean, my wife Lisa said Ben was supposed to be hanging out with Tommy this afternoon. Thing is Ben hasn't called and he's not at home so we were kind of worried.”

“Oh, let me get him.” the woman says her frown disappearing. “Tommy! Come down here please!” A young boy about Ben's age with blond hair and blue eyes bounds down the stairs. “What is it mom?” he asks.

“This is Ben's dad, he says you two were going to hang out today, is that true?”

“Yeah, we were supposed to meet after school.” Tommy says glancing at Dean. “I waited for him for like half an hour. He never showed up so I figured he went home.”

“Thanks Tommy.” Dean says with a smile.

“No problem.” Tommy replies. “You need anything else mom?”

“No that's it, go back inside now.” his mom says giving him a gentle shove. She watches as he heads back upstairs. “I'm sorry we couldn't be more help. He hasn't called or anything?”

“No, that's why I'm here, I was hoping maybe he talked to Tommy before he left.”

“Sorry, it doesn't seem like it.” Tommy's mom replies with a shrug. “If there's anything we can do, let me know.”

“Yeah sure.” Dean says. “Thanks for your time.”

“You're welcome.” Dean sighs as he walks back to the car. He calls Lisa to let her know he's going to drive around town a bit to see if he can find Ben. He tries to think of where Ben could have gone. He remembers there's an old arcade at the edge of town. _It's better than nothing_ he thinks as he starts the car. It's not long before he gets there. He searches the whole place but there's no sign of Ben. _This isn't like Ben at all. If he had been beaten up again and couldn't go home on his own the school would have called._ But Lisa said she hadn't heard anything. He frowns, _now_ what? He checks his phone as he starts the car, he sees she left him another message. He curses and punches the steering wheel when he listens to it. _Dean I think I know what happened to Ben. The good news is I think I know who, or rather what has him. The bad news is I think it may be monster related, just come home when you get this._ He drives home as fast he can. “Dean, did you have any luck?” Lisa asks clearly relieved to see.

“No, sorry.” Dean replies. “What's with the message you left me? Monsters, really?”

“I swear I'm not crazy.” Lisa says. “I went to take another look at the window in Ben's room.”

“The broken one?”

“What other one is there?”

“Right, and?”

“There were tracks Dean, they lead right up to the window, they weren't human.”

“Are you sure about this?”

“I know you think I'm crazy with worry, but I live with you, don't I?” Lisa replies glaring at him.

“I didn't say that.” Dean says grabbing a flashlight from his study. “Let me go look at these tracks.”

“I'm coming with you.”

“Fine, it's not like I'm going very far.” Dean opens the door and goes to the back of the house. He shines the flashlight around where Ben's window is. He doesn't see any markings at least not at first. He looks at the ground and sees the footprints Lisa mentioned. His heart sinks when he realizes she was right, they aren't human not entirely. He looks at the window again, he squints. “What is it?” Lisa asks.

“I could swear I see marks on the siding.” Dean says. “But they're really faint.”

“What kind of marks?”

“I don't know.” Dean says. “Let's go back inside, let me call Sam see if he knows what this is.”

“Don't you know?”

“I have a hunch, but I just want to be sure.” Dean says. He sees the expression on Lisa's face. “Don't worry, wherever Ben is we'll get him back, I promise.”

“You better.” They head back inside. As Dean dials Sam's number he can't help but think this may be vampire related.

** “**Hey Dean, what's up?” Sam asks.

“Hey, I've got some bad news.” Dean pauses. “It's Ben, he's missing, whatever took him isn't human.”

“Missing? Since when?” Sam asks. Donna asks what's going on, he mouths that Ben is missing and her eyes go wide.

“Since this afternoon.” Dean replies. “Lisa said he was supposed to go to a friend’s house, we both checked with Ben's friend but he said he never showed up to meet him.”

“Man, Dean I'm sorry to hear that.” Sam says. “Why are you calling me though? I appreciate the thought but you can handle one monster can't you?”

“Yeah but I can't shake the feeling that maybe it's related to the vampires you and Donna have been hunting.”

“What makes you say that?”

“Lebanon isn't far Lawrence, besides vampires aren't our biggest fans. We kinda kill them for a living.”

“How do you know it's not just some random monster? Dean, are you sure you're not just paranoid because of our earlier conversation?”

“I _saw_ the tracks near Ben's window, they weren't human Sam. I don't care if it's the same monster or not, I just want to find Ben, preferably alive.”

“I know, so do I.” Sam says. “But it's not like we doing this case together, how would they even know who you are?”

“Sam, we're the Winchesters, _every_ monster knows who we are.”

“Oh, right, I guess with you not hunting anymore I kind of forgot.”

“What that I'm your brother?”

“No Dean I didn't forget that.” Sam laughs rolling his eyes. “But you've been out of the loop for so long I figured the monsters had lost interest in you.”

“I guess not.” Dean says, “I think Ben still has his phone, I haven't seen it since I've been home, I haven't asked Lisa but I'm sure she would've told me if she'd seen it.”

“You want me to track it for you?”

“Please. Let me know if you find anything okay?”

“I will, Dean don't worry we're going to find him.”

“I hope so.”

“Have you forgotten our family motto, you know, saving people hunting things?” Sam teases.

“No, I remember, stay safe Sam, I'll talk to you later.”

“Okay.”

Dean sighs as he gets up to turn on the light in his study. He turns on the computer, he smiles, _guess I'm the one doing the research this time_. He looks for any weird phenomena or incidents in Kansas in the last week or so. Nothing pops up at first, but after a few minutes he sees that a few people have been disappearing around town. The police don't seem to have any leads but there have been the same type of tracks seen at the crime scenes. Dean clicks on a picture of the tracks, _big surprise, the same kind that were by Ben's window._ He notices that all the other victims had their windows broken in the same way too. “Looks like I wasn't wrong, these are definitely linked.” he muses as he continues his research. Dean is surprised when he finally looks at the clock. It reads nine-thirty, _Have I been at this that long?_ He turns off the computer and stands up, stretching as he does so. He goes out to the living room. It's quiet and the only light is coming from the living room where Lisa has fallen asleep on the couch. He walks over to the couch and gently shakes her arm. “Oh, hey any luck?” she asks.

“Some, I figured out Ben's not the only person who's gone missing recently. The same type of tracks we found were also found at the other crime scenes, and the windows were all smashed in the same way.”

“That's good right? If there's a pattern maybe-”

“Maybe it's not a monster?”

“Exactly.”

“I hate to say it, but monsters have patterns too.” Dean says sitting down next to her on the couch. She leans her head on his shoulder. “Did you talk to Sam?” she asks.

“Yeah, he's going to track Ben's phone.” Dean replies. “I figured since neither of us found it, Ben must still have it.”

“True, Dean, if it really was a vampire that took Ben, do you think they could have turned him?” Lisa asks sitting up suddenly. “It's been hours now, there would have been enough time.”

“It's possible.” Dean replies “But as long as he hasn't drunk any blood yet, we can still turn him back into a human, we just have to kill the vampire that turned him and have Ben drink the blood.”

“Oh, well that's good I guess.”

“Hey, I'm sure he's fine.” Dean says seeing her expression.

“Everyone keeps saying that, but what if they're wrong?” Lisa says. “He could be turned, he could be hurt, Dean he could be _dead_ and we don't even know it.”

“I know, but we can't start thinking like that.” Dean says taking her hand. “It won't do him any good if we're both a nervous wreck.”

“I guess.” Lisa says with a sigh. “To think my biggest worry earlier was that we would split up.”

“Yeah, though I told you that wasn't going to happen.”

“Dean I know you, sooner or later you would have broken that promise. Even if you didn't mean to.”

“No, I wouldn't have I-”

“Dean I caught you trying to leave in the middle of the night, _again_.” Lisa says glaring at him removing her hand from his grasp. “If I hadn't you would have left without saying anything. Do you know how many times I've woken up worried sick that something happened to you?”

“I'm sorry I made you worry.”

“It's bad enough that I have to worry about you. Now with Ben missing I don't know how much more of this I can take.”

“Hey, we'll find Ben. I promise I'm not going anywhere.” Dean says. “How many times do I have to tell you that?”

“I get what you're trying to say but those are just words.” Lisa replies. “I'm not going to believe you until the next time Sam needs you and you don't try to sneak out again.”

“I see. Then what do you want me to do?”

“Just be here with me, for once don't be the hero.” Lisa says. “I know how hard that is for you, but I would really appreciate it.”

“Okay I'll try.” Dean says with a sigh.

Dean takes his ring off and puts it on the table. He pauses before leaving, debating whether to wake Lisa up or not. He knows she'll be mad. He left her a note this time, even if all it says is that he'll back for his ring. He sighs, part of him thinks it would be easier if it was just him and Sam. It's too hard when there's other people involved in the equation. How many times have he and Lisa fought about hunting? He knows she says he doesn't have to choose between her and Ben and hunting, but he knows she would rather he stopped. It's not like he hasn't done that mostly. Even Sam admitted as much in their earlier conversation. He sighs again and puts a hand on Lisa's shoulder, he can't help giving her a quick kiss on the head before he leaves. She stirs but doesn't wake up. Dean goes downstairs and picks up the bag by the couch. He realizes he never unpacked it from the night before. He closes the door and locks it, then puts his bag in the car. It feels weird not driving the Impala, but he decided Sam might need it more than he would. He kind of misses it now. He starts the engine and drives towards Lebanon where Sam and Donna are waiting for him. “I just hope we're not too late.” he says to himself as he drives out of town.


	2. Ben Gets Rescued

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam, Dean and Donna plan a daring rescue of Ben. What will they encounter in the old creepy house? Vampires, ghosts, who knows?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I realize the text got formatted weird, I plan on fixing the alignment issue at some point, hopefully soon. I just wanted to get the second chapter out there. Hope you enjoy it.

Chapter 2

It's late when he gets to the bunker. He's not surprised to see Sam and Donna waiting outside for him. He pulls up next to them and gets out. “Hey how was the drive?” Sam asks.  


"It was fine.”  
“Hey, it's been awhile.” Donna says. “Sorry it's not under better circumstances.”  
“Yeah, me too.” Dean replies. “How have you been?”  
“Pretty good, I've become quite the vampire hunter in case you hadn't heard.”  
“I did actually, Sam told me.”  
“Oh right, sorry it's been a long couple of days.” Donna says laughing. “I forgot you called me.”  
“Don't worry about it.”  
“Let's go inside, I want to show you where I think Ben might be.” Sam says as Dean grabs his bag from the car. He sees the Impala parked off to the side. “You been taking good care of my car?” he asks Sam.  
“Yeah, and it's not technically yours anymore.” Sam says with a laugh. “At least you haven't asked for it back yet.”  
“True, that doesn't mean I won't kill you if you put a dent in it.”  
“I know, it's a good thing I don't have a dog, huh?”  
“Why?” Donna asks.  
“I told Sam once there's only three rules when it comes to the car.” Dean says as they head inside. “No country music, no dogs and don't leave any marks on her.”  
“Right, guys and their cars.” Donna says with a smirk. They all laugh as Sam flips on the lights. Dean sets his bag on the floor. Not much has changed since he left. There are still a few wooden tables with desk lamps and a basic kitchen. He imagines the rooms are the same too, it was home for him before he married Lisa. One of the few they had since they started hunting. “You okay?” Sam asks putting a hand on his shoulder.  
“Yeah just remembering what it was like to live here.”  
“It's not bad, a little cold but it works.” Donna says as she walks down the hall. Dean and Sam follow her. They end up in a room not unlike Dean's study where a computer screen shows a map with various dots on it. “These are all the spots we've found vampires or other monsters.” Sam says sitting down in a chair.  
“How do we know which one Ben is?”  
“It took awhile but I think I figured out where he is.” Sam says glancing at Donna. She shrugs at him. Dean frowns. “What is it?”  
“It's the same house Donna and I tracked the vampires to earlier.”  
“The same one where you thought the alpha vampire was?”  
“We didn't see him when we were there.” Donna says. “Just a few regular vamps, a couple of them were dead already. We killed a couple more and Sam told you we managed to wound one of them, but it got away.”  
“It's been a long time; they could have turned Ben by now.” Dean says. “I know there's a cure, but we could be too late.”  
“How long has Ben been missing?” Donna asks.  
“Since yesterday afternoon, at least since he got out of school.” Dean says. “He usually gets out around 3 or so.”  
“It's possible they haven't turned him yet.” Donna says frowning.  
“How do you figure?”  
“If Sam's right, and they just want to taunt you guys...”  
“What?”  
“They may wait until you get there and then try to turn him.” Donna says giving Dean a worried look.  
“Dean we don't know that for sure.” Sam says trying to reassure him.  
“No, Donna's right, if that's true we may still have time.” Dean says. “You never said where this place was. Is it far from here?”  
“No, we could be there in an hour.”  
“Then what are we waiting for? Let's go.” Dean says turning to leave. He stops when he sees Sam and Donna haven't moved. Sam glances at Donna, who shakes her head at him. Sam sighs he doesn't want to say what he's thinking. Dean glances at them, he knows what they're thinking, he doesn't want to admit he's thinking the same thing. “Dean what if, how do I put this?” Donna asks gently.  
“What if Ben's already dead?” Dean asks.  
“I'm sure he's fine, but we need to be prepared for every possibility.” Donna replies quietly.  
“Dean it hasn't been that long. If it had been a week then maybe he would have died from starvation or he might have been turned. But it's only been one night.”  
“Thanks Sam, I guess you're not worried.” Dean says glaring at Sam.  
“Dean I didn't mean it that way, I'm just trying to be realistic. I care about him too.”  
“Sure doesn't sound like it.”  
“Give your brother a break.” Donna says suddenly. “He's been hunting this group of vamps for a couple weeks now. He only called me for a help a couple days ago, and that was only because you called me.”  
“I'm sorry, with what's been going on with Lisa, she probably hates me already, this isn't helping any.” Dean says.  
“I know you guys had a fight, did something else happen?” Sam asks raising his eyebrows.  
“What do you think?” Dean asks holding up his hand. Sam looks at it, then glances at Dean. “Does this mean you kept your promise?”  
“Not exactly.” Dean says. “I left her a note with my ring saying I'd be back for it.”  
“What promise?” Donna asks. “Dean what did you do?”  
“We were fighting yesterday because I tried to sneak out again. She stopped me from leaving and I told her if I tried to do it again she could have my wedding ring back.”  
“What on earth made you do that?”  
“I wanted to hold myself accountable for once.” Dean says heading out of the study. He sits down at one of the tables. He tries collect himself, he's supposed to be the strong one, but it's too much, my marriage is probably over, and Ben's probably dead thanks to me he thinks. After a few minutes he hears footsteps and sees Sam standing next to him. “Hey, you look like hell.”  
“You don't look so hot yourself.”  
“Just because you left Lisa your ring doesn't mean you're never getting it back.” Sam says sitting down next to him.  
“I know, but you didn't see her face.” Dean replies wiping his eyes. “She was furious at me Sam, she didn't want to admit it but she wanted me to choose her and Ben over you.”  
“I doubt that.” Sam says. “I think she just wants to be treated equally.”  
“Funny, that's what she said.”  
“That's probably what she meant. You always make things so black and white Dean.” Sam says laughing. “You don't have to choose between me and your wife. I think you know that. You were always too loyal to people you cared about.”  
“I don't see you complaining.”  
“I didn't mean me.” Sam says. “I meant dad. I miss him but he wasn't greatest guy.”  
“What's your point?”  
“I mean you had this blind faith in the man, like he could never do anything wrong.”  
“Better than you, first chance you got you run off to college and never look back.” Dean says frowning. “I had to beg you to come look for him with me.”  
“I went with you didn't?” Sam says. “I didn't have to go. I could have stayed and finished school. Heck I could be the one with a normal life right now instead of you.”  
“What's that supposed to mean?”  
“I don't blame you for what happened to Jessica.” Sam says. “I did, for a long time, but I realized it wasn't your fault. It was the yellow eyed demon trying to pit us against each other.”  
“Sam I'm sorry.”  
“Don't worry about it, it was a long time ago.” Sam says. “What I'm trying to say is it's great to be faithful and loyal and all that, but everyone makes mistakes.”  
“I know but their mistakes don't usually get them killed.”  
“She knows you Dean; she knows you could never choose anyone else over me. I'm not married to her, but I think I know her pretty well. She's just worried about you.”  
“What if it's my fault Ben is missing?” Dean asks. “I should've fixed that stupid window, if I had then maybe he wouldn't be-”  
“Stop that, there's nothing you could have done.” Sam says. “You know how it is, the monsters keep coming no matter what happens. Even when we found dad, we all got in that terrible accident.”  
“You don't think it was an accident?”  
“I don't know but life is full of random chances, some of them good, some of them bad, this is one of the bad ones.”  
“I guess.” Dean says standing up. “Are we going to rescue Ben or not?”  
“Yeah sure, let me just grab Donna.” Sam says heading down the hall.

An hour later the three of them are standing in front of a huge old house. “How do we want to do this?” Donna asks.  
“I think we should split up.” Sam says. “Dean you take the first floor, Donna you head to the basement and I'll head to the second floor.”  
“Sounds like a plan to me.” Dean says as he opens the trunk. “I guess you did one thing right.” he says to Sam.  
“What's that?”  
“You kept the arsenal.” Dean says smiling as he picks out a few weapons.  
“Where do you think I got the idea from?” Donna asks as she grabs a few things and heads into the house.  
“Okay everyone keeps their phones on, we'll call each other if one of us finds something.”  
“I'm surprised we get reception here.” Dean says as he closes the trunk and heads towards the house.  
“Me too, but I'm glad we do.” Sam says not far behind him. “You ready for this?”  
“Not like I have much choice.” Dean says as they enter the house. It's pitch dark inside and they both turn on flashlights as they enter. Dean looks around as Sam heads upstairs. It's an old house with broken windows and everything is covered in cobwebs. If I didn't hunt monsters for a living, I'd think this place was haunted Dean thinks as he moves further into the house. He checks the rooms but doesn't find anything. Suddenly movement catches his eye. He swings the flashlight around but doesn't see anything. “I bet that was one of the vampires.” he says to himself taking out his gun. He sees something out of the corner of his eye, when he shines his light on it he sees a figure. It's a human but it's skin and bones, it bares its teeth at him and he pulls the trigger. The creature screams and tries to launch itself at Dean. He shoots it again and it lands on the floor with a thud. “Guess that's one down.” he says as he moves further down the hall. He jumps when he rounds a corner and sees Donna pointing a flashlight at him. “I thought you were in the basement.”  
“I was but there's nothing down there.” Donna replied. “I heard a scream and figured either it got you or you got it.”  
“I'm rusty but I can still kill monsters.”  
“I'm glad, it would suck to lose you this early.”  
“Thanks, I think.” Dean says lowering his gun. “You didn't have any luck huh?”  
“No, sorry.” Donna replies with a shrug. “What about you?”  
“Other than the vampire I haven't seen anything.”  
“Well there's two of us now, hopefully we'll cover more ground.”  
“Yeah, let's go this way.” Dean says turning around and heading back towards the staircase. They turn down the hallway, it looks the same as the rest of the house. It's not long before they find the entrance to the basement. Dean insists on heading down despite Donna's protests. “You think I wasn't thorough enough?”  
“No but it can't hurt to have someone else look right?”  
“I guess not.” Donna says with a shrug and follows him down the stairs. Dean shines his flashlight around the small cramped space. He feels his foot hit something, it's a skeleton, it looks vaguely human but it's hard to tell since it's so old. “I told you there wasn't anything down here.” Donna says shining her light on the wall next to Dean.  
“Didn't you and Sam say you killed a few vampires when you were here last time?”  
“Yes, why?”  
“Then why haven't found any bodies?”  
“Maybe they got dragged out, it's not like we killed all of them.” Donna says. “The one I wounded could have come back with some friends later.”  
“So what, they buried the bodies in the backyard?”  
“How should I know?” Donna asks glaring at him. “Besides I thought we were here to find Ben, not debate how many vampires I killed.”  
“You're right I'm sorry, it's just strange that's all.”  
“It is but don't worry about it.” Donna says. “Let's just find Ben and get out of here, I don’t want to press our luck.”  
“Sounds like a plan.” Dean says trying to turn around. “Hey, watch where you shine that thing!” he yells as he's nearly blinded by Donna's flashlight.  
“Sorry, I thought I saw a crack in the wall there.” Donna says lowering her light. Dean shines his light in the same direction. They both see a huge crack in the wall. “You got a pickax in that car of yours?”  
“No, but we may not need one.” Dean replies grabbing part of the wall and tugging at it. The brick crumbles in his hand. “Help me get this wall down would you?”  
“Sure.” Donna says setting down her flashlight. They start tearing at the wall, when they finish, they find a narrow room hidden behind it. “Guess I missed something.” Donna jokes heading inside.  
“Be careful, we don't what's in there.” Dean says following her. “We don't want to get trapped down here.”  
“Yeah but it's the best lead we have so far.” Donna calls from inside. “You want to find Ben don't you?”  
“Of course.” Dean says trying the light bulb which doesn't work. “But I don't want to end up dead in the process.”  
“I think I found something.” Donna says waving Dean over to where she's standing.  
“What?” Dean asks. He's confused by her expression until he shines his flashlight in the direction she's staring at. He nearly drops the flashlight when he sees Ben tied to a chair. “Oh my god, are you okay?” he asks.  
“Yeah I'm fine.” Ben says coughing. “Any chance you guys could get me out of here?”  
“Yeah sure, give me a sec.” Dean says clambering over the debris in front of him. He unties Ben's hands and helps him up. He frowns when Ben tries to stand up but nearly falls down. “I think I did something to my ankle.” he says.  
“Figures we finally find you and you're hurt.” Donna says with a laugh.  
“Hey, be nice.” Dean growls.  
“Sorry, he's alive and he's not a vampire so that's score one for us right?”  
“I suppose so.” Dean says taking Ben's arm. “Be careful, I don't want to have to carry you out.”  
“Okay, I'm just glad you're here.” Ben says as the make their out of the basement and up the stairs. Donna retrieves their flashlights and they manage to get back to the staircase. They all sit down on the stairs for a moment.  
“What happened?” Dean asks Ben.  
“It was so fast I wasn't sure at first.” Ben says. “One minute I was going to meet Tommy, the next thing I knew I was grabbed by some random guy and thrown in the back of car.”  
“No one saw this?” Donna asks.  
“If they did no one said anything.” Ben replies with a shrug. “They brought me back here and put me in that room.”  
“I don't get it, if you still had your phone why didn't you call me?” Dean asks.  
“I tried but I think one of them took the battery out.” Ben says taking his phone out of his pocket. Dean examines it, sure enough the battery is missing. “If that's your phone then what was Sam tracking all this time?” Donna asks. Suddenly they hear a blood curdling scream. “Guess Sam found another vampire.” Donna says.  
“Don't worry I think we managed to kill most of them.” Dean says seeing Ben's scared expression.  
“I hope so.” Ben says. “I'm sorry I worried you and mom.”  
“Hey, it's not your fault.” Dean says squeezing his shoulder. “I'm just glad you're okay.”  
“Me too.” Donna says. “If it weren't for Dean we wouldn't have known about this place.”  
“He called you?”  
“He did. Sam and I were tracking your phone, at least we thought we were, that's how we found you.”  
“Is mom okay?”  
“She's fine, she'll be happy to see you that's for sure.” Dean says with a smile. He glances up as Sam comes down the stairs. Sam smiles when he sees Ben. “Hey glad you're okay.” he says sitting down next to them. “We were worried about you.”  
“Well I'm not a vampire so that's good.” Ben says.  
“You got that right.” Sam says laughing.  
“We should get out of here.” Donna says. “We may have killed a lot of vamps, but I still haven't seen the one I wounded the last time we were here.”  
“Right, can you walk?” Sam asks Ben. Dean shakes his head at Sam. Sam shrugs and goes to open the door. He jumps when he sees Donna reaching for her gun. “Donna what are you-”  
“Get out of the way I think we found the injured one.” Donna says as Sam opens the door. Suddenly they hear a growl as a vampire lunges at them followed by a gunshot as Donna fires at it. It dies quickly landing with a thud near the door. Donna takes a deep breath and holsters her gun. She turns to the rest of them and smiles. “Okay definitely time to go.” she says as she nudges the body out of the way.  
“I'd say so.” Sam says following her. Dean helps Ben stand up and they move slowly out the door. Ben stares at the dead vampire as they pass. Once outside Sam starts the car and Dean helps Ben into the backseat. Donna closes the trunk and gets in and they head back to the bunker.


	3. Chapter 3

A couple hours later Ben is patched up and they're trying to figure out to how to explain things to Lisa. “I'm sure she'll be happy that you're both alive and that Ben's not a vampire.” Donna says.  
“That's not what I'm worried about.” Dean says.  
“I know but you're being too hard on yourself.” Sam says.  
“What are you guys talking about?” Ben asks.  
“It's nothing.” Dean says glaring at Donna.  
“What?” Donna asked. Dean sighs and glances at his watch. “We should get home, it's getting late.”  
“Dean you might as well stay here, there's plenty of room.” Sam says. “It's almost midnight I don't think Lisa will mind as long you call her.”  
“Yeah I guess you're right.” Dean says.  
“Don't worry.” Sam says noticing his expression. “I'm sure she'll be happy to hear from you.”  
“We'll see about that.” Dean says. “Ben you go with Sam he'll find you a place to sleep.”  
“Okay, thanks for coming to get me.”  
“Your mom would kill me if I hadn't.” Dean says smiling. He waits until they've left, and Donna has gone off to bed before he calls Lisa. He takes a deep breath as he hears her groggy voice. “Hey Dean, where are you?” she asks.  
“I'm at the bunker, we found Ben, he's fine.”  
“Thank god, where was he?”  
“He was in an old house, it may or may not have had a lot of vampires in it.” Dean replies. “We killed a few while we were there.”  
“I'm not surprised.” Lisa says. “It's late, is everything okay?”  
“Yeah, we're going to spend the night here. I just wanted to let you know so you wouldn't be worried.”  
“Thanks.”  
“I'll let you get back to sleep.”  
“Okay, hey Dean.”  
“Yeah?”  
“You know I love you right?”  
“Yeah I know, I love you too.”  
“Okay just checking, get some sleep.”  
“You too.” Dean breathes a sigh of relief as he ends the call. He turns off the lights and heads to bed thankful that everything turned out okay.

The next day Dean and Ben get ready to leave. “Hey, I think you should have the Impala back.” Sam says as they head outside and load up the car.  
“Thanks, I was starting to miss her actually.”  
“I thought you might.” Sam says laughing. “Besides I may need something less flashy to tail any monsters I end up chasing.”  
“Works for me.” Dean says. “You and Donna ready to go?”  
“Yeah I think so.” Sam says as he gets in the passenger seat. Donna gets in the backseat with Ben. Dean slides into the driver's seat and starts the car. “You ready to go home?” he asks as he pulls out of the driveway. “Definitely.” Ben says smiling.  
“Okay then.” Dean says as he fiddles with the radio, landing on a classic rock station. He gets on the highway, he's glad they're all heading home in once piece.

A couple hours later they pull into Dean's driveway. Dean unloads his bag and helps Ben up the steps. Sam and Donna get out and wait outside. “I'm glad he's okay.” Donna says.  
“Me too. I'd have hell to pay if they weren't.”  
“I wouldn't want to be you if either of them ended up dead.” Donna says laughing.  
“I'm so glad you're both okay.” Lisa says as Dean and Ben come in the door. She notices Ben is limping, but she doesn't care. She's just happy he's alive.  
“Yeah so are we.” Dean says laughing. They pause so Ben can rest for a minute. Lisa gives them both a hug. She takes Ben's arm and helps him upstairs. Dean goes back outside to say good-bye to Donna and Sam. “Are you going to be okay?” Donna asks.  
“Yeah I think so.”  
“Are you sure?” Sam asks.  
“I'll be fine, I'll call you guys if I need anything, I promise.”  
“You better.” Donna says getting in the car. She waves as Sam pulls out of the driveway. Dean waves as they drive off. He turns back to the house. He goes to the backyard and gets out a piece of wood out of the shed. The first thing he's going to do is fix that window. Nothing else is getting in this house, he thinks as he grabs his tools and heads up to Ben's room.

A few hours later he and Lisa are sitting on the couch. “What are you thinking?” he asks.  
“Nothing.”  
“Liar, you're thinking something.” Dean says laughing.  
“I was just worried about you that's all.” Lisa says squeezing his hand.  
“When aren't you worried me?”  
“It's your fault, if you would just stay in bed at night, instead of running off to chase monsters.” Lisa teases.  
“I did leave you note this time.”  
“You did, thanks for that.” Lisa says. “Though what you said kind of freaked me out.”  
“It did?”  
“Dean I was worried you might not come back.”  
“You're always worried about that apparently.”  
“I know but this time felt different.”  
“How?”  
“I don't know, it just did.”  
“Well don't worry about that now, I came back and Ben is fine.” Dean says kissing her forehead.  
“You're right, I shouldn't be worried. You're a hunter after all, you kill monsters for a living.”  
“I'm surprised to hear you say that.”  
“I told you before I wouldn't make you choose. I meant it.”  
“Yeah Sam told me as much when I met up with them.”  
“You didn't believe me the other day?”  
“I did, but sometimes the way you look at me makes me wonder.”  
“I meant it, I wouldn't make you choose.” Lisa says. “Besides I like Sam, even if he has no idea what to give a kid for his birthday.”  
“Hey, I'm sure he'll do better next year.”  
“I hope so, do you know how hard it is to get rid of a book written in Latin?”  
“No but I'm sure you do.”  
“I'm just glad you're both okay.” Lisa says. “I don't know what I would have done if one you died.”  
“Me either.” Dean says, they're both quiet for a moment. “So I'm guessing you'll want to help Sam track down that alpha vampire?” Lisa says after a minute.  
“Maybe, only if he calls me for help.” Dean says. “Is that okay?”  
“Of course, as long as you leave me a note first.” Lisa says smiling.  
“Sure.” Dean says laughing. Dean's phone rings he sees it's Sam. “I'll be right back.”  
“Okay.”  
“Hey Sam, what's up?”  
“Not much just wanted to check in with you.” Sam says. “Make sure Ben is okay.”  
“He's fine, you guys were right Lisa was glad to see both of us.”  
“And the other thing?”  
“What other thing?”  
“I guess that means you two aren't fighting anymore.”  
“No, we're fine.” Dean says. “She even said it was okay for me to help you chase down that alpha, if you need help that is.”  
“I'm good for now.” Sam says. “I'll let you know if I need anything though.”  
“Sounds good.” Dean says. “Take care of yourself okay?”  
“You too.” Sam says. Dean goes back into the living room and sits down next to Lisa. “Everything okay?” she asks.  
“Yeah he was making sure Ben was okay.”  
“I see.” Lisa says. “It's late we should go to bed.”  
“Yeah I guess we do have work in the morning.” They get up and Dean turns off the lights. They head upstairs, Dean pauses, he thought he heard something. He shakes his head, it's probably nothing. Even it isn't, he was able to get Ben back alive and kill a few vampires in the process. Whatever other monsters are out there he knows he and Sam will be ready for them.


End file.
